A civic activist has blamed the Pune Municipal Corporation’s (PMC) lack of planning during reconstruction or repair of roads as the reason for waterlogging on many stretches across the city.
Civic activist Vivek Velankar raised the issue with the Pune municipal commissioner and sought action against contractors and officers responsible for the monsoon preparedness works.
Velankar said, “Rainwater is not drained fully due to uneven road surfaces. Manholes of stormwater drains are located higher than the road level at several locations and some are found at the top of sloping roads. Civic engineers and contractors should have addressed this issue in the first place before spending money on road repairs.”
The activist said that the civic administration should survey uneven manholes and take proactive steps to avoid incidents of waterlogging.
“Waterlogging incidents have been reported by residents of Shastri Road, Mhatre Bridge Junction, Vithalwadi, Bibwewadi, Salunkhe Vihar Junction, Lokmanyanagar and Kothrud. Such reports only belie PMC’s claim of construction of effective stormwater drains to tackle waterlogging by spent a large amount of taxpayers’ money,” he said.